


All Washed Up

by Lady_of_Rohan



Category: Uncharted
Genre: Age Difference, Art, Bathtubs, F/M, Homecoming, Older Woman/Younger Man, Paperwork, Partial Nudity, Romance, Secret Relationship, Spies & Secret Agents, Surprises, Tallowe, Villains
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-23
Updated: 2013-07-23
Packaged: 2017-12-21 03:45:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/895406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_of_Rohan/pseuds/Lady_of_Rohan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Being away from Marlowe takes its toll on Talbot… but does she miss him in return? Talbot is soon to find out when Marlowe returns home from out of country business.</p>
            </blockquote>





	All Washed Up

 

 

**All Washed Up**

 

It was often said that “absence makes that heart grow fonder," but Talbot had never put much thought into the old adage until it became relevant in a real-life sense.

  
Two weeks was an exceptionally long time to go without seeing someone you cared about, especially since he rarely left Marlowe’s side. It was a strange concept to be separated from her for more than a few days.

  
Talbot had been out of country on a high-profile mission involving the extermination of a certain threat… and the taking back of a rather priceless heirloom. The entire operation had run smoothly, far better than he had planned, and he was rather eager to return to England after a grueling week. When he arrived back on the homefront, he was surprised when Marlowe was nowhere to be found. It had turned out that she was called away for a business meeting, and would be gone for an undisclosed amount of time.

  
Though his outward appearance gave no signs to reveal his disappointment, Talbot was, in a word, lost. He spent nearly the entire week doing menial tasks, wandering around and thinking of little else but seeing Marlowe again. But most of all, he avoided any unnecessary contact with the other agents under Marlowe’s employ. They only served to pester him, and conversation was made quite uncomfortable when the topic of her was brought up.

  
When he was beginning to feel as if his very sanity was at stake, Talbot was given the call that Marlowe’s private plane had arrived safely back in London.  
He waited patiently until Marlowe stepped through the double-doors of the mansion. Just by a single glance, he could tell that she was weary, but it didn’t stop his heart from palpitating in his chest at the sight of her. She was still stunning, despite her apparent state of tiredness.

  
As he rushed over to relieve her of her jacket and the briefcase she was carrying, she gave him the briefest of glances before continuing her path down the hallway and towards the stairwell.

  
“Marlowe, welcome home," Talbot said, falling into stride beside her as she kept up a brisk pace with her boots clicking against the floor. “I would like to inform you that the mission in New York went far better than expected."

  
“I’m well aware of your success," she said, her voice lacking its usual inflection.

  
“How—?" Talbot’s brow furrowed. He had purposely avoided any contact with her, and had informed the other agents to do the same since she was to remain undisturbed. Of course, he hadn’t mentioned the little fact that he wanted the honor of telling Marlowe himself…

  
“Harris told me. A couple days ago, in fact."

  
_That bastard._ He was going to strangle him.

  
“Oh. Well, that’s… good news," he lied. “How was business in France?"

  
“Deplorable," Marlowe huffed. “I’d have been home ages ago, had we not been dealing with the Belgians."

  
Talbot gave a sympathetic nod. Country-hopping wasn’t initially on her itinerary, but business was business. He was mostly just relieved to have her back. He remained silent as Marlowe stopped to regard him briefly. His eyes searched hers, looking for any semblance of a reason to think that she missed him as much as he missed her, but he was left wanting.

  
“I’ve a lot of paperwork to attend to," she said, gesturing towards the briefcase in his grasp. “Your diligence would be most appreciated."

  
“Of course." Talbot dutifully tried not to frown. Without another word, Marlowe headed up the stairs to leave him standing and glancing after her.

  
He felt stunned for a few moments before he turned, noticing a couple of men standing guard in the foyer. They both shifted immediately, as if they hadn’t been eavesdropping on the exchange that had just taken place.

  
“What are you looking at?" Talbot snapped, with eyes narrowed. He shouldered past them and headed towards the library, barking orders over his shoulder. “Get back to work."

  
Once inside the expansive room, he shut the doors behind him and slammed the briefcase onto the table much harder than he intended to. Talbot slumped into the nearest chair, opening the case to begin working. As he filed through reports, contracts, and the usual dirty-work, Talbot’s mind was anywhere but the task at hand.

  
Minutes ticked by. By the time the entire stack of papers had been dealt with, he had no concept of how long it had actually taken him to complete. In all honesty, he didn’t care. With a weary sigh, Talbot neatly piled them back into the briefcase to deliver to Marlowe. With any luck, she’d be in a more amicable mood…

  
Talbot crossed the hall and knocked before entering Marlowe’s office, where she would surely be situated. She wasn’t one to retire early, especially after such an important trip. From inside, he heard her utter a “come in," and so he did.  
Stepping into the room, he stood in front of her desk with the briefcase in hand, patiently waiting for her to greet him. His palms were sweating. Marlowe was seated, having changed into a navy blue blouse as she read over some documents. The color suited her… and she seemed rather immersed in whatever she was poring over.

  
“You can leave that there," she said, without looking up at him. This time, the frown that came unbidden to Talbot’s features couldn’t be prevented. He set the briefcase upon the edge of her spacious desk, pausing as he tried not to fidget anxiously. Silence had never been so deafening.

  
She leaned forward across the desk to take it from him, giving him a clear view of her cleavage down her half-unbuttoned blouse. Talbot shook his head, feeling guilty for having stared for a moment too long. The room was starting to feel unbearably hot and he suddenly had the urge to adjust his tie around his neck to be a bit looser, but he decided against it.

  
“Is there anything else you require?" he asked politely, with his hands folded behind his back.

  
At last, Marlowe looked at him, adjusting her reading glasses on the bridge of her nose. Noticing his rigid appearance, she offered a very forced-looking smile. It wasn’t unusual for her to keep a calm level of professionalism around the other agents, but now that she was alone with him, there was really no excuse.

  
“I believe I’m quite fine."

  
“Anything at all?"

  
“Talbot, _really_ ," she said, voice strained. Just like that, the smile had disappeared. “I’m rather preoccupied, if you haven’t already noticed."

  
He paused for a beat or two, shaking his head. Could two weeks have been long enough for her to have moved on, or to have forgotten about everything they’d shared? Had she even missed him? He opened his mouth to speak without giving it a second thought.

  
“I just thought that—"

  
“Leave, Talbot. _Now_."

  
He flinched under her intense gaze, and Marlowe directed her index finger towards the door for emphasis. With a poise that he certainly didn’t feel, Talbot gave a nod and exited the room, quietly closing the door behind him. His posture immediately deflated.

  
Perhaps some fresh air was what he needed, and a place to be alone with his scattered thoughts. He made his way towards the door leading out into the gardens. It was a place that he didn’t often find himself, as Talbot wasn’t particularly fond of being outdoors, but the scenery might prove to be a nice change of gears in his current state.

  
Hands buried in his pockets, he followed the winding stone path, where the exotic plants were in full-bloom. The vibrant splash of color did nothing to placate him, nor did the fresh air spilling into his lungs. He circled around the trickling fountains, and up towards the terrace where an intricate gazebo was perched high above the rest of the scenery. It was there that Talbot leaned against the siding, looking out over the gardens with a deep frown marking lines on his face. It was a bit warm, so he removed his jacket and folded it neatly over one arm.

  
He wasn’t sure how such things could relax people. Talbot was certainly struggling at the current moment, and he couldn’t help but feel that his life was a fool’s errand. Even the most beautiful gardens had weeds, and while some of them could stay a little while, they’d eventually be plucked and uprooted.

  
Dwelling in his dark thoughts until the light on the horizon began to fade, Talbot finally decided to head back inside. He was halfway towards the manor when his cell phone beeped, indicating an incoming call. He was naive to believe that Marlowe wouldn’t have any further work for him, but the thought of seeing her again, being ignored by her, was killing him inside.

  
Adjusting his earpiece, Talbot clicked a button and answered.

  
“Yes?"

  
“Might you bring some champagne up to my room? It’s been a long day."

  
“Certainly. I’ll be right there."

  
Talbot hung up, at least somewhat relieved that Marlowe had retired for the evening. It had been a long week for both of them.

  
He made a pitstop to the wine cellar, picking out something befitting for her before heading upstairs and into Marlowe’s chambers. As he stepped inside and closed the door behind him, he glanced around with his brow furrowed in confusion. She was nowhere to be found. He half-expected her to be reading or relaxing in bed, as she often did after a hard day.

  
It was then that he noticed the door to her bathroom was open, and the water in the bathtub was running.Talbot stepped hesitantly in, feeling like it was forbidden territory. His eyes grew wide at the unexpected sight before him and he would have turned immediately had his entire body not been paralyzed.

  
Marlowe was reclining in her bath tub, hair wet and eyes closed as she leaned back with a serene expression.

  
He cleared his throat, unintentionally announcing his presence as her eyes fell upon him. In that moment, he swore he was a dead man… but Marlowe’s features displayed no anger… only mild amusement.

  
“I brought the champagne," he said, trying not to fumble over his words. His grip was tightening on the wine bottle.

  
“Ah, excellent."

  
She sat upright and leaned on the edge of the tub, propping her chin upon her palm as she watched him.

  
Talbot averted his eyes from the obvious show she was giving him. He shouldn’t be seeing this. Something wasn’t right. Why would she have called him up in such a state of undress? Surely she shouldn’t be teasing him in such a manner…

  
Talbot shut his eyes as tightly as he could, forcing himself not to stare at her glistening body. He’d already seen too much.

  
“I should really be going," he said, swallowing hard.

  
“Nonsense. Why don’t you pour a couple of glasses?" She patted the side of the tub, and he noticed a tray with two sparkling glasses sitting upon it. “Come and sit down."

  
Talbot directed his gaze to her face as he stepped towards her and tried not to act as flustered as he felt.

  
When he hesitated, Marlowe gave him a reassuring smile. He perched himself at the edge of the bath tub, remaining seated as he opened the bottle and began pouring the sparkling liquid. He was in the process of pouring the second glass when her arms came to wrap around his waist, and his entire body went even more rigid against her. She allowed her palms to wander up and down his chest, while her head rested against his back.

  
She certainly had strange ways of showing affection, and at the most inopportune times. What was she hoping to achieve, aside from the obvious act of driving him crazy?

  
Talbot hardly had time to settle in her embrace before she pulled him backwards and into the tub, where he splashed backside-first into the warm water.  
He managed to catch himself before his head went under, but his suit was utterly drenched, as were his shoes. Shock took a couple of seconds to set in as he balanced on his knees, hip-deep in water as he locked eyes with Marlowe. She seemed not to care that he’d have to clean yet another perfectly good suit, or that water was spilling over the tub since his unceremonious entrance. In fact, she was laughing. It was the happiest he’d seen her since she had arrived home earlier in the day.

  
Talbot wasn’t sure whether to frown at his misfortune, blush at Marlowe’s unabashed nakedness, or laugh along with her at his own expense… but he didn’t have too long to dwell on it before she leaned forward and crushed her lips to his, with her fingers entangled in the hair at the base of his neck.

  
With her legs on either side of him, Talbot was balancing the best he could in the slippery wetness of the bathtub. He placed his palms on the edges of the tub to anchor himself, and also to prevent touching Marlowe out of respect.

  
Her tongue eagerly explored his mouth as Talbot finally allowed himself to relax. Marlowe pulled him closer still, so that his body was against hers, saturated and warm. It was almost too much for him to bear after such a confusing day, but he could feel relief washing over him.

  
When Marlowe finally broke their kiss, placing her hands on either side of his face, she gave an irresistibly coy little grin.

  
“So, tell me, Talbot. Did you miss me?"

  
Talbot froze, at a loss for what to say. If she expected an honest answer, then words couldn’t properly express. Talbot opened his mouth to speak but no sound came forth. Instead, he allowed himself to become lost in the depths of her eyes, hoping that he could somehow convey what he felt. He’d drown in those green eyes if he could.

  
“I’ll take that as a yes," she chuckled, and tugged him close so that his head was resting upon her shoulder. She toyed with his hair as she leaned her head against his, and Talbot couldn’t help but sigh in the warmth of her arms.

  
There must have been meaning to those old sayings, because in that moment… soaked to the bone and laying beside Marlowe, Talbot’s heart couldn’t possibly be any fonder.

 

 


End file.
